Potato-bug killer.



E. L. MOESER.

POTATO BUG KILLER. APPL|cAT|`oN-HLD 1uLY1o.191's.

1,249,988; Patented Deo. 11, 1917.

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POTATO BUG KILLER.

. l APPLICATON FILED JULY 104 1916 "l 1,249,98. Patented Dec. 11,191?.

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E. L. MOESER.

POTATO BUG KILLER.

APPLlcTloN FILED luLY lo. 191s. Lgss. Patented Dec.11,191

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ERNEST L. Monsun, or GQILDENVALLEY, MINNESOTA.

i" l PoTATo-BUG Numan.' 'n

vTo all whom t may concern.'

' Be it known that I, ERNEST L. MoEsER, a citizen of the United States, residingat Golden Valley, in the county of Hennepin and State of Minnesota, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements. in Potato-Bug Killers; and I dohereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact "description ofthe invention, such as will enable others skilled inthe art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention has for its object to provide an improved machine for destroying potato bugs, and similar insects that live upon and are noxious to plant growth, and, to the above ends, generally stated, the invention consists of the novel devices and combinartions -of devices hereinafter Vdefined in the claims.

,described and The operations by which the bugs are revmoved from the plants and destroyed are all mechanical. By the action of rotary brushes and 'cooperating devices, the bugs are 'brushed from the plants or vines onto traveling aprons and by the latter are carried between crushing` rollers, and from thence are thrown onto the ground. The invention "also involves other important features as will hereinafter appear. In the accompanying drawings which illustrate the invention, like characters 1ndicate like parts throughout the several ofFig. 3;

views.

l beingV diagrammatically shown by dotted lines;

Fig. 4 is a rear elevation of the machine; Fig. 5 is a fragmentary section on the line Fig. 6 is an enlarged section'takenon the 1 line V6--6 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 7 is a horizontal section takenvapvproximately on the irregular line 'Ze-7 "of ,"Fig. 6, some parts being shown in lfull, and

` some parts being broken away.

All of the parts o-f the machine are carried on va two-wheeled truck which, as shown, is made lup of an axle 8, wheels 9,

journaled thereon,- and 'a frame 10 'having `.sippnefmn ined July 1o, 1916. serial N.'10s,2's6`.- l y p voperated upon, Y y

Each of the -saidduplic'ated bugdestroy- 'ing mechanisms comprises a supplementaly These'i'su'pplemental frames 13 are adjustably supported on the main vframe v10, preferably by the following` connections.

The' numerals'14 and 15 res ectively, indi-V Specificationl of Letters Patent. Patented Dc, 11, 1917,. I y

forwardly projecting rigidlyattachedshafts 11 and operat'orsseat-lQl The' machine shown is a duplex machine,

that is a 'machine having duplicate sets of bug destroying devices arranged to simultaneously'operate 'on four rows of l,potato vines.' vThe shafts 11 are so located thata horse hitched therei'nwill travel-between the inner two of thek four rows that arebeing frame 13.

cate transverselylong bailike lifting levers each having four fo-rwardlyandv downwardly ex'ten'dedvarms, 'f the outer of which arms are pi'vot'ed to the side bars of the main frame 10, respectively at 14a and 15a.

The lower ends of the arms vof the lifting lever 14 are connected to 'the'sides of the supplemental frames 13 bylinks 16, while the ends of the arms of `the-lifting lever 15 are connected vto'lugs or brackets 17 on the upper front portions lofthe said supplemental frames. (See particularly Figs. J1 and 2.) Eachl supplemental frame 13 Asupports two pairs of forwardlyl and rear- Wardly extended rollers 18`over which end- The'inner rollers 18 are so spaced that the innermost portions of the aprons 19 do not come intov contact, but have va gap 2O between them asbest shown in Fig. 6.'

Just 'below the inner rollers 18 are co4 operating crushing rollers 21 vthat are arranged to run in close contact. Spring pressed scraperplates 22, supported from the supplemental frames 13 engage'the un-l der surfaces vof the vaprons 19,'at points just above the `crushing rollers.

Other spring pressed scraper bladesl 23 also supported from the supplementalframes 13 engage the under surfaces of the said crushingrollers (See particularly Fig. 5). The scraper blades 22,"as shown, are carried at thevfree, jends 4'of springjarmsg22a^attached to Vcross bars o-f the 'frame13-' lThe scraper blades 23, as shown, arecarried by short arms 23?V less belts or aprons 19 are arranged to run.

intermediatel-y pivoted to thev j same cross bars ofthe vframe 13, and subject /tocoiled springs 23".

At their'rearends, the shafts ofthe'inner .rallies 15er@ @wird Wim-Seur sears 12e that mesh With intermediate spur gearst j ournaled on therear-portions oflth'e supplemental trames 13. (See particularly Figs.

6 and 7). The intermediate gears-25'imesh` with similar spur gears Qyyliich in turn invter-rnesh, fone# Withlflthe Jother. @ne Vote the spurl gears 26 is secured to; ashatt-,Q'j having at its rear end a beveled' gear 28 that meshes `Vvvitl'i a bevell 'gear-2Q ongatransverse counter-shaft 30 journaled'lin suitable bearings e onvfthe e rearportion of. the corresponding 1j supplemental frame 13.l At theinner end of H shaft 30 offeachsupplemental trame kis a sprocket 31, sprocle t chains 32 running over lthefsprockets 31v and over sprockets 33 (see A lFigs.. 2 and v 4) -on Ja -longy transyerse upper ,-.cou1 1ter.shafty through both lsupplemental s .I V"frames 13 and is journaled in- Suitable bear- .ings thereongy At'itscentralfportion of the `.counter-shaft 34 lisi asprocket V35. .Numeral .1;36 indicatesalinlr, `one end of which is jour- .naled'on the axlej8,and the other endof :which is journaled'onithecentrallportion or' .,stfhe'upper counte'rjshaft 34.` Sprocket chain 25..;352; runs over. .the sprocketj 35 and over a .sprocket 37ythat' is normally'loose on the central portion .ofthe axle 8 andis adapted l I to be connected -to saidaXlefV for rotation therewith, by fa cooperating sliding` halfcllutch38 -onsaid axle;V Half-clutch 38'is arranged to befmoved-into and outy of action i by a lever '39pivotedto-the rear portion of ftheendeframea l(See Fig.. 4)'.

Located aboveeach-apron19is a` rotary .554 .brush 40 Yhaving shafts that are journaledin suitable .bearings ou the supplemental frames d 4.3,` .:irlhese brushesg are arranged in .for- ..Wardly divergingpairsand they also `preterably incline. downwardly in lforwardly e0fdo-ire.f.tio1i-.-` YTheir.front ends-extend laterally beyond vtheoouter .edges of the coperating aprons so thatthey torre therewith a sort .-of .crotch vfor directing the vines ontothe coperating aprons; 'lfhesupper. inner portionsffof said-rollers are covered by curved gathering plates A41 shovvnjas supported by bars 42 carriedby the supplemental `frames i l '2-13.1v Thefront endsofltheplates 41V have .curved arms or: curved extensions 43 that masslst in the lgatheringreaction. ySecured to the front portlonse ofythe supplemental "{fframesw13enear'therouterrportions of .the

5aprons 19- are gathering arms 44 that eo- 1 oper-ate.Withdhefarlns 43 to increase the iigatherin'gactiononthe-vines.Y f their-#rear ,ends,the shafts of the r`v`brushes 40.5arefprovided Withfbeveled'gears MAI en marked on Flgs. 1, 4, and T.. The vines will ,245g-that mesh with beveledjgea'rst46 on thehefhalffiluteh 38,.is loekedtogfthe-hub ofthe scrape .the crushed bugs off from thelcrushl ing rollers and cause the sameto drop onto the ground.-

, i, y s p i The bail-like lifting levers 14 and 15 serve tellin; the supplemental frame 13, keeping the same alwaysk substantially' horizontal. l'

For imparting vertical j adjustments tol the said supplemental trames, l provide a latch lever, 47. that is pivoted to and coperaltes with a latch segment 48 rigidly secured ,on

the lrear portion Y of the main iframeV Latch lever 47v is connected by a rod V49, ,to

an arm grigidly securedgand projecting upward from the central portion of the rear bail-like lever 40.` Thisarm 50 is connected bya link. 52 to an arm 53 securedlto therlv central portion, of thev front bail-like leverl.

.By the use of the vimproved machine, potato bugsu mayv be 'very rapidly destroyed Withoutv injuring the potato vines.V Obviously thevmacliine may be used 4for thedef4 struction of variousV other vinsects yvhicheat bushes and various vegetables that grovvy kin bush-lilreform. A Y, ihat lclaim is: y

' the ,combinatione rwith a4 pair of'VV crushing rollers extended longitudinally of theY line ot' travel ot" .the machine, of a pair of apm ranged to deliver to said crushing frollers, means for driving-theysaid aprons so that their upper portions move reverselv and .inn #Ward vtmzard said A. crushing rollers, for

proximately horizontal endless. aprons ar-VA 1. ln a machine for destroying `insects,`

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WardlyL diverging. cylindrical brushes overy ylyingthe. respective aprons With .theirfront ends projectingbeyond the vgathering portions of said aprons and at an angle thereto., and. means for rotating said brushesso that theiriinderportions move inthe same diree-v e tion as the upper portions ofthe coperating endless aprons; f Y f 2. ln a machine .for destroying`insects, the combination with Cooperating crushing the bugs to sadrollers, `and aY rotarybrush overlying said` apr.onwithfits axis oblique t0 the. line `ot travel, and with ,itszfront end projecting beyond the. outer portion of'said rollers, ofranendless Aapron for delivejringf` apron, lmeans tor driv ng said rollers, apronv j vaneinevenient .eith a gathering 'plate overlying the upper inner portion of said brush and having an arm projecting forward thereof. v 3. In a vmachine for destroying insects, the combination with cooperating crushing rollers, of reversely driven endless and approximately horizontal aprons arranged to deliver the bugs to the upper portions of said rollers, forwardly diverging rotary brushes overlying said aprons and projecting outward thereof at their forward portions, Scrapers operating on the inner portionsV of said aprons and on the lower p ortions of said crushing rollers, and gathering plates overlying the inner upper portions of said brushes and having gathering arms pro- 15 jeoting forward thereof.

In testimony whereof I aliX my 'signature in presence of two witnesses.

ERNEST L. MOESER. Vitnesses: i y

CLARA DEMAREST, F. D. MERCHANT.

copies ot this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

